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Jeri Cleveland and Debra Sewell, Curriculum Department, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired

Abstract: The authors discuss the importance of fine and gross motor development for children with visual impairments. The importance of learning based on hands-on experiences is also discussed.

Keywords: , blind children, early development, motor skills

For many of our students, both blind and low vision, tactile learning is their “pathway to progress.” Parents and TVIs light that path by bringing the world to children and showing others how to do it as well. Visual impairment affects the whole process of information gathering. Far too often we expect blind or visually impaired children to base their knowledge of the world on verbal descriptions and very limited “hands-on” experiences. This cannot compare to the almost constant kaleidoscope of incidental information that fully sighted children have taken in before they go to school. Although we typically think of only blind children as needing tactual skills instruction, low vision students might also be missing crucial information that will affect concept development and functioning abilities.

Research suggests that when sensory input, including tactile input, is imbedded within a purposeful activity, it is meaningful to the central nervous system and can promote learning. Young blind children need families and professionals to provide intense stimulation, motivation and movement. If these children do not become actively engaged in experiences and exploration at an early age, their approach to gathering information is passive and they cannot fully develop their sense of touch. Children with visual impairment must learn to be active seekers of information about their world. This is necessary to gain the essential background knowledge they need to have before they start to school. In the best of all worlds, development of motor, tactile, and visual skills, language acquisition, and concept development happen at the same time through meaningful infant and early childhood experiences.

Real hands-on, do-it-myself experiences are the place to start. Experiences need to be interactive, not all adult-directed. The child must be actively engaged, and he must initiate some of the movement in order to learn from an experience. It takes many experiences of a similar type to develop one concept.

Providing experiences does not have to be an elaborate, planned event. Simply involve the child in everyday activities. For example, when dressing, allow him to hold the shirt, and help him explore the fabric, the neck, the buttons, the sleeve, the front and the back, while describing and labeling the parts you are touching together. Although this takes a little more time in the dressing routine, your child is gaining invaluable information, concepts, and skills.

Experiences build concepts. A concept is a mental representation, image or idea of tangible and concrete objects (e.g., a chair, a dog); and intangible ideas and feelings (e.g., colors, emotions). Concept development involves more than spatial relationships. It is linking the tactual interpretation of parts to build an entire perception of the whole, and having enough meaningful experiences to find patterns, and make connections and generalizations (tall-ness, hour-ness, dog-ness). We see many different kinds of spoons so we develop the generalized concept of what a spoon is. Therefore a spoon is more than just the baby spoon the child eats with.

In order to be meaningful, language must be based on real knowledge and experiences in labeling, describing, expressing feelings, etc. The overemphasis of oral language without the experiences of moving, touching and doing often results in the use of “empty language.” Empty language occurs when the student uses language for which he has no real understanding. We must help our children use the descriptive words that label the sensations and objects they are seeing or touching or tasting or doing, while they are seeing, touching, tasting or doing them. Start this process early by pairing descriptive language within daily routines even before your child can talk.

Get that baby moving! Remember tactile skills development is dependent on the development of both gross and fine motor skills. Large muscles develop first. Babies need to kick their legs, wave their arms, roll over, creep, and crawl. Fully sighted children are motivated to move by the desire to reach the people and objects they can see. We must provide sensory input that lets visually impaired babies know there are things in their world they want to touch, hold, feel, or taste. Gross motor skills are the foundation for fine motor development. As soon as a child has some control over his large muscles, challenge him to move to the next step by providing him with fun things to do—toys to hold, buttons to push, wheels to turn, and spoons to bang on the table and eat with.

Everyday experiences help develop the skills children need to be efficient tactual learners. They need strong hands and fingers for grasping, squeezing, pinching, and holding. They also need flexibility, dexterity and control which would include movements such as turning wrists, isolating finger movements, and using light touch. Gross and fine motor skills are built upon, improved, and better controlled throughout the years of early childhood. Muscle memory is the ability of the brain to move muscles automatically without conscious effort. It is built over time through repetition of a given set of motor skills. For example, a baby must pull himself up and creep around furniture many, many times before the “step movements” become automatic.

Tactual learning is not the same as visual learning, and it necessitates a lot more touching than we are typically used to. Tactual learning requires that information be gained by exploration of one aspect of an object at a time, and piecing it together to make the whole. It requires immediate proximity and multiple opportunities to explore. Tactual learning simply takes more time. Before children know they can reach out and touch things, the adults have to intentionally set up opportunities for tactile interaction. This needs to start in infancy by increasing movement, interaction, stimulation and access to interesting, and motivating people and objects.

Barraga and Erin (1992) described five levels of tactual learning: awareness and attention; structure and shape; part-towhole relationships; graphic representations; and Braille symbols. Listed below are activity ideas for the first three levels.

Activities: Awareness and Attention

Touching an infant’s cheek with the nipple of a bottle to encourage the child to seek it with his mouth Offering fingers or objects for the child to hold